That Morning Star
by rugiada
Summary: Join Parker L. Amia as she travels the world with her crew seeking not titles or treasure, but adventure! Friends old and new come together as a darker force is stirred within the World Government. Can Amia take down the World Nobles, or will she die trying? (In-process of rewriting)
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first story, so I'm a bit nervous. Actually, scratch that, I'm very nervous. If you review(which I'd be eternally grateful for) all I ask for is no flames. Criticism I'll take with open arms, though.**

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Amia cracked open an eye, groaning as that cursed morning star nearly blinded her. The obnoxious cries of seagulls grated on the exhausted girl's nerves. "Shut up!" Amia shrieked, whipping her body up into a sitting position and wincing at the soreness of her body. "Freaking ocean," she muttered, forcing herself onto her feet and stretching. Sand was under her clothes, gritty and annoying as hell. Glancing around, the girl noticed a bustling port town a bit of a ways down the shore and grinned as she caught her bearings. She was on a beach on an unidentified island, most likely in the Grand Line. With a sigh, Amia set off toward the town, figuring she'd find her answers in a bar. As Amia trekked through the sand, she recalled what had happened the previous night. If her memories were correct, Amia would be worried if they weren't, she had been thrown off a cruise ship she had snuck onto in the midst of a huge storm and had very nearly drowned. It was very lucky that she kept her life, as being a Devil Fruit User and falling into the ocean did not exactly go hand in hand.

It appeared she had washed up on an inhabited island, thank God, Amia was desperately craving a warm meal. The entire place was sand, except for a ridiculously steep rock island that looked like the fossilized poop of God. For a second, she though she saw something move, but it disappeared as quickly as it had arrived. "Huh," Amia murmured before turning her attention back to walking.

Finally, Amia reached the town, a bit overwhelmed by her energetic surroundings as she searched for a bar. "Ha!" Amia laughed as she eyed a rather crappy establishment proudly titled: _The __Alcohol Empire. _Smirking, Amia strode inside the dusty wooden building and collapsed onto a stool by the bar. Signaling the man working, the girl settled in for a long wait, as the bar tender was attending a few customers already. After about twenty minutes, just as she was about to doze off, a finger poked her cheek. "So, you look horrible and I took it upon myself to get you some water. What did you do to yourself? Drown?" a voice chuckled.

Blinking herself awake, Amia sat up, eyes glued on the glass. Staring at the liquid, she realized just how thirsty she was and chugged the entire glass, grinning stupidly at the bar tender. "Yeah," she laughed. "I can't believe I'm alive!" Taken by surprise, he awkwardly laughed it off. "But yeah, where am I? Is there anything cool here?"

"You're on the island of Vita in the Grand Line. The coolest thing here would have to be Demon's Cliff," the bar tender informed Amia. "The pile of giant boulders is Demon's Cliff, even though it is classified as a mountain despite it not looking like one. The creepiest thing is that there's supposedly some sort of killer shadow that lives in the cracks of the rocks, or so rumors say. I personally don't believe it, but there's this guy who wandered to the top and lives there now, never comes down. His name's Luce, and he used to own a repair shop. All his customers say everything fixed by him never broke again, only needing a monthly checkup. He left his little sister, Allie, all by herself down here. She's really misses him, so we're trying to get him down, though everyone who goes up never comes down or falls off. Anyway, my name's Greg, owner and bar tender of this place. What about you? How'd you end up on lonely Vita?"

"Amia," she replied, grinning. "I was caught in a storm and washed up here. I'm super lucky today!"

"Eh?" Greg replied, shocked. _So it wasn't a joke? _He thought. Shaking his head, the man laughed and brushed it off. After all, there were plenty of weird people that showed up in his bar, and she had nothing on the freaky mime that showed up every now and then. The had to play charades to find out what _he_ wanted. The door of the bar opening caught his attention, and Greg grinned at the familiar face that came through. "Oi, Allie! Over here!"

Amia turned to look at the adorable six year old that came through and had to pinch her nose to stop the nosebleed. The kid had long, waist-length light brown hair and transparent sea-green eyes. Allie smiled at Greg and bounded over and greeted him with a nod. "Hello, Miss, I'm Allie," she turned Amia, causing a squeal to be released.

"A-Amia," she stuttered, face burning as she whipped around to stare at a wall as she struggled to control herself. Greg laughed at her knowingly, Allie completely clueless. Finally gaining composure, Amia turned back to the child and smiled, "Nice to meet you!"

"Can I have juice, Greg?" Allie asked the man politely, and was rewarded by the golden beverage handed to her. Staring at the juice brought tears to her eyes as she began to cry. "Nii-saaaan," she bawled, causing Greg to freak out.

"Ahhh! There, there!" he awkwardly patted Allie on the back as her cries escalated into wails.

"Shut the brat up!" an ugly fat man yelled. Amia's eye twitched.

"Of course, sir," Greg exclaimed, bowing a bit to him before continuing his attempts to quiet the child.

"I miss you!" Allie seemed to cry louder. Vein popping out of his temple, the bearded man stood and pointed a gun at Allie.

"If you can't, I will!" he snarled. Others around the bar seemed to stiffen, obviously not happy with his decision. Amia bent her head down, shadows covering her eyes. The man cocked the gun and fired a bullet, the bang echoing throughout the establishment. There was a flash of movement, and Amia was standing beside the man with a cold, polite smile on her face. Allie's cries silenced and nobody dared move, all staring at the blonde who had been sitting at the bar.

"I believe this is your bullet, sir," Amia informed the man, placing the bullet in his pocket. He began sweating buckets, obviously terrified.

"D-Demon!" he yelled, repeatedly clicking the trigger as Amia dodged the bullets until there were none left.

"Why, thank you," she growled before punching him in the nose. The man collapsed, cradling a bleeding nose as he cried.

"Ah...what was it that you said earlier? Oh, yes! _Shut the brat up_," Amia snarled, stomping on his face viciously. The man passed out as his head was smashed through the floor, blood dripping off his misshapen face. A sniff broke the horribly awkward silence that followed, and Amia turned to Allie, smiling brightly. "Sorry about that! Someone as cute as you doesn't deserve to be near filth like him. I hope you're not scared of me now," the blonde laughed nervously. Allie ran forward and attached herself to Amia's waist, looking up into the older women's eyes.

"You're strong! Please...save my nii-chan!" Allie cried, and Amia froze, eyes softening. She bent down to the girl's level and pat the girl's head.

"Of course. I promise. And then, you two can join my crew!"

And with that, Amia detached the crying child from her waist and left the silent bar, heading through the noisy town as she headed to the offending boulder pile. A face that Amia hadn't seen for many years appeared at the edge of her vision and sent chills down her spine as she turned, only to find he wasn't there. Shaking it off, Amia continued to the base of Demon's Cliff and stared up at the top, grinning. "This will be fun!" Amia laughed as she began her ascent.

As Amia climbed, no creatures from horror stories appeared and attacked her, but she did feel eyes on her. Standing up, Amia suddenly fell on her butt, balance completely gone. "Fuuuu," she began, but cut off before completing the word. The world seemed to spin as Amia hauled herself up on her feet before collapsing to her knees.

"Here," a voice said, and a hand grasped her bicep and hauled Amia to her feet. She glanced up and studied the gorgeous blonde male before her. He was tall and lanky, and had really creepy pale blue eyes.

"Luce?" Amia guessed when she saw she had reached the top and regained her balance. He blinked, confused.

"You know me?" he asked, surprised, before paling. "You're not...pregnant...right?"

Bright red, Amia punched him in the face. "No way, perv!" she yelled, embarrassed. "I washed up here this morning and met your sister. She wants me to save you, or something...and why the hell would I be pregnant?!"

Immediately, Luce sobered at her words. "Come in," he sighed, ignoring her question, and walked into a large cave inside one of the boulders. Amia paled as an image of fire flashed through her mind. "Hurry up," Luce called. Heart in her throat, the blonde hesitantly walked into the cave. "Prepare to stay here for the rest of your life. You're an idiot, by the way. The problem isn't getting up, it's getting down." Luce told her, collapsing in a chair as Amia sat in front of him on the floor. "Plus the fact that there's a giant-ass shadow out there that doesn't like it when his prisoners break out."

"Huh?" Amia asked.

"Two reasons we can't get down: You fall off if you try, and there's some shadow with a prison-fetish out there who will kill you if you get far enough down."

"You're calling me an idiot for coming up here to get you when you're the one who came up here for no reason in the first place," Amia told him bluntly, causing Luce to blush.

"Shut up! Some of Allie's friends pulled a prank on me and told me she had wandered up here on a dare." he defended himself.

"Sister complex," Amia muttered under her breath.

"Huh?"

"Nothing. Anyway! I heard you make unbreakable items," she told Luce, and he smiled a bit.

"Devil Fruit, I can take already-made items and add qualities to them. Unbreakable is one, but some can create fire and the like," Luce told her.

"Cool! You and Allie are definitely joining my crew!" Amia laughed loudly.

"You're a pirate?" Luce asked, surprised.

"Yup! Well...I don't have a crew," Amia admitted. "Which is why you and Allie will be my first recruits!

"Well, whatever, let's focus on getting down. I've managed to make a sword out of rock and I think if I can figure out the shadow's weakness, I can get us out!"

"I know how to get us down!" Amia laughed, causing Luce to frown. "You got a giant shield around here?"

"Why the hell would I have a giant shield lying around? Were you even listening?"

"Well?"

"There," Luce muttered, pointing at a large box. Amia stood and hopped on over, opening the crate and grinning at what she found. Pulling out the shield, Amia exited the cave, relief flooding her senses at the sight of the sky. She pushed those feeling down and with them the shield. Luce had followed her, and so she pushed him in the front before sitting behind him and wrapping her legs and arms around her.

"Hold on to the leather strap!" Amia cackled.

"Oh hell no!" Luce yelled, trying to sit up, but was restricted by Amia.

"Let's go!" And with that she pushed them off the edge.

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**I have chapter two outlined already if people like this, so yeah. I hope you enjoyed this!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Sophia Likes Sweets: You make me blush~! Amia is definitely going to be the badass defender of all-things-cute, and Luce...well, he's a pervert. 'Nuff said. Thank you for the review, it means so much to me! It made me happy to know I've done well enough to know that this wasn't a hopeless cause. Again, thanks!**

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"Damn you!" Luce shouted as they ricocheted off boulders and spun in empty air, the ground approaching at an alarming pace. He tightened his grip on the leather strap as Amia shrieked with anticipation, right in his ear. At the halfway point, an angry yell echoed through the mountain, sending shivers down the villagers' spines. The blonde glanced backwards, paleing at the sight of a tall man who seemed to be leaking shadows.

"Go faster, Pervert!" Amia yelled.

"Watch the ear!"

"Watch your mouth!"

"How the hell am I supposed to go faster, Oh Wish And Powerful Great One?!"

"Like this," and with that Amia stood up and latched herself onto Luce's neck, leaning forward. The shield bounced off a sharp edge, sending the duo flying high over the city as they held on for dear life. Villagers stared upwards with huge eyes as they seemingly flew forwards, flipping around like drunk monkeys on balance beams. The roar sounded again, shaking the ground beneath.

"Bar incoming!" Amia laughed as they neared _The Alcohol Empire._ Poor Greg. And with that they crashed through the roof, destroying the floor once again. They landed on the ugly, fat man from before who had just begun to wake up, only to pass out again. Greg stood there, soul rising from his body, as he stared disbelievingly at the two.

"Hey Greg!" Amia greeted cheerfully, hopping off the shield as Luce collapsed forward, emotionally spent for the rest of his life. So much terror in five very short minutes was apparently too much for the guy. "Where's Allie? I got Luce for her!" Amia told the bar tender. Customers who had been there to witness the beat up on the man from earlier awkwardly stood up and evacuated the premises. This girl had no sense of danger, and they weren't sticking around to deal with the outcome. It was pretty bad, if it had anything to do with the miniature earthquake and unearthly roars that they had heard seconds before Amia had landed.

"She's not here...went to...flower shop," Greg managed to stutter.

"Ah, thanks!" Amia told him, turning to Luce. "Get your ass up, Pervert, we're going to find your sister."

"Absolutely no self-preservation," Luce was muttering from where he was crouched on the floor. "Probably not even human...yes, that's it, she's not human."

Frowning at his insane muttering, Amia punched her co-blonde in the head, smirking as he winced. "Come on, you want to see Allie, right?" Grumbling all the while, Luce stood and followed Amia as they exited, once again leaving a wrecked bar behind. Greg seemed to snap back into it, turning to the doors.

"Oi! You may be hot, but come back and pay for this damage!" he yelled. All he received in return was laughter that gradually faded. Slumping against the bar, Greg held his head in his hands. "She's mad," he muttered, a depressing aura hanging around him.

* * *

Now back to our heroes! Amia and Luce ran down the street, searching for Allie. "Greg told me that Allie had gone to the flower shop. Follow me!" Amia informed her companion with an almost feral grin.

"Oi! Why are you leading? You don't even know where the flower shop is!" Luce complained.

"Shut up, Pervert! I'm the hero, so I'm always in front. I'd look stupid otherwise!" she retorted. The other was about to respond when the sky turned black. Upon further examination, Amia noted that it was a dome that covered only the village and Demon's Cliff. "What the hell?" she asked, confused by the sudden change of events.

"A-Amia," Luce stuttered, pointing at something. Amia followed his gaze to where a couple of creepy stick figure looking monsters rose from the shadows. A clicking noise seemed to echo through the town as the creatures trapped them against a wall and opened gaping holes that Luce assumed was their mouths. Within a ball of energy was produced, spinning rapidly.

"Duck!" Amia ordered, and Luce followed her orders and dropped like a rock. Above them the balls shot forward and completely obliterated the building behind him. One look at the black flames that were eating away at the wreckage had Amia cussing like a sailor and dragging Luce forward and away from the flames. "Hell Fire," she muttered, white as a sheet. "One touch and you're a human torch. The flames follow you into Hell as well, I wouldn't recommend it." Nodding, Luce eyed the dangerous material as Amia stood. "I can take care of these guys. After all, all you need to do to remove shadows," she paused, lifting a hand as hundreds of tiny lights appeared around the creatures. Long, agonized wails filled the air as the shadows melted into nothingness. "Is to add a little light."

"Stars?" Luce murmured.

"Suta-suta no mi, I'm a Logia fruit-user," Amia explained with a grin, "I'm technically an exploding ball of gas."

Eye twitching, Luce stood. "Whatever," he sighed, deciding to put it aside for later. "Let's find Allie before these things find her."

They set off again, aiding villagers when needed and requesting evacuation from everyone they ran into. There were a few raised brows at the sudden appearance of Luce, but no one questioned them and retreated towards the dock to head into the bay. Eventually, they were the only two left along with Allie, who they still hadn't found. "Where is she?" Luce groaned, worried for the girl he hadn't seen in almost two years.

"There," Amia growled, and he zeroed in on the transparent man holding his little sister by the throat.

"Ah! I found my precious prisoners! What a horrible prank you've played, running off like that. I am Reta, your jailer," he laughed, cold amusement shining in his eyes. "I came across a little kitten, and it seems she's very important to the both of you. Perhaps punishment is in order to ensure obedience from both of you two in the future."

"A-Amia," Allie wheezed as Reta raised a sword. Their eyes met and tears began pouring from the girls eyes. "Help me!" The sword was buried to the hilt in the child's chest. Blood dripped off the tip as Amia stared at the girl who had begged her to save her brother just that morning. Hell, they had laughed together and Amia had made a promise. _This isn't happening_, was all Amia could think.

"Allie!" Luce cried out. Reta flung the body off his sword into Luce, who caught the barely breathing girl.

"You got Nii-chan," Allie breathed. A smile graced her face. "You really are strong, Miss Amia. I missed you, Nii-chan."

"Allie, hang on!" Luce sobbed.

"Ne, Nii-chan, is that our Mommy? She's pretty," Allie blinked as a knowing look went into her eyes. "Welcome home, Nii-chan." And with that her body went limp, causing Luce to yell in panic.

"Allie! Hey, Allie! Oh God, you can't die on me. I finally got to see you again. Allie!" he cried out, hugging the cold body close. A wave of grief so strong it nearly knocked Amia off her feet hit her with the force of a tsunami before being replaced by smoldering anger.

"Luce, take Allie to a boat and wait in the bay for me. I am about to do something incredibly rash and stupid, and I would not like for you to die," Amia ordered, voice cold. Her companion was staring at the body in his arms numbly. He nodded before he gathered the frail body up in his arms and stumbled off in the general direction of the docks. "Mister Reta, you are incredibly strong," she complimented in a monotone. The man seemed to preen at the praise.

"Yes, yes I am. I'll gather the boy after I deal with you. Smart plan, by the way, jumping off the mountain the way you did on one of that boy's unbreakable shields. You're much more dangerous than you let on, Parker L. Amia, though that isn't even your real name. Just a memento of times long past," Reta laughed. She stiffened at her last name, seeing only the laughing face of a certain redhead who's face she had buried away long ago. "You should know, Amia, that the World Nobles are on the move. It won't be long before they find you again. You've made them very mad!"

"You are also incredibly stupid," Aima continued angrily, snapping back to reality. Reta frowned a bit at that. Who complimented someone before insulting their intellect? "You seem to know of my past, I don't care to know why or how, but if you truly do, you know there is one thing absolutely _no one_ is allowed to kill," she snarled.

"No idea," Reta admitted, amused. Amia laughed disbelievingly, suddenly seeing red.

"Your future is going to end a hell of a lot more painfully. That one thing that is so precious to me, that scum like you have never had. _Friends__,_" Amia growled, sweeping a hand in front of her. Stars dotted the skies, extremely small and barely visible. "Luce loved Allie, she was his previous little sister and my friend. And you killed her. I'm here to make you pay your dues in full. Tell me, Reta, what happens when a star runs out of nuclear fuel?"

Reta paled, stepping backwards. "You're not crazy enough to-"

"I've been told I'm insane enough to blow up the entire world. One tiny island is nothing," Aima growled. "And I doubt either of us will survive this, but as I said earlier today...I'm feeling _very _lucky today." Aima calmed down, smiling. "_Star Burst,_" she murmured.

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Luce sat in the fishing boat, holding his sister and staring at the village. The dome had dispersed, revealing hundreds of stars dotting the surrounding area. And as one, explosions filled the night. He had seen nothing more beautiful than the light show he was witnessing. Luce cried, hugging Allie to him as he watched the supernovas cover the island.

* * *

"I survived," Amia stated, standing beside her friend.

"Yes."

"Allie didn't."

"No."

Eyes softening, the blonde crouched next to Luce in front of the gravestone. He had buried Allie an hour ago and had been joined by Amia not long after. Two thirds of the island had been wiped out of existence. Now Luce stood at a cliff overlooking the ocean beside the blonde who had saved him on a neighboring island.

"Ne, Luce," she continued, voice a bit tight.

"Yes?" he replied.

"I swear...I'm never going to let anyone I love be murdered ever again!" It was then Luce realized she was crying, and touched his cheek to find he was sobbing just as hard. He whipped his head aroung to gaze at her.

"And I'll follow you to the edges of the earth...Captain." And the two sat before the grave crying together as that morning star rose over the horizon.

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**Yeah...Allie was set to die from the beginning, so sorry for anyone who liked her. This was a pretty depressing chapter, but at least Amia has a crew now. Review if you'd like, and I'd appreciate it!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you to anyone who has found the time to read this story! I was reading this the other day, though, and decided to rework the plot into something more interesting and rewrite the chapters previously completed. So it might be a while before Chapter Four, but hopefully it will be worth the wait. Hopefully I'll be able to develop the characters' personalities and make this more interesting.**

** Sophia Likes Sweets: Ehehehe, sorry~! Allie was set to be a catalyst from the first time she was mentioned. I'm so glad you liked it, and your support really helps! Hopefully this fanfiction can become more detailed and much more interesting to you and other readers, and I would love any feedback. :)**

**Da HecKlaR: Ahh, I'm so happy to have another reviewer! Your reviews are lovely to read and super motivating(they tend to have this effect on me (^w^))! I'm glad you've enjoyed this story, and sorry for the sudden death. And yes, I have plans for Amia, Luce, and all their future crewmates!**

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"Hey, Luce," Amia whined, "I'm bored! We've been out here for days!" Currently, she and her Weapons Master were drifting aimlessly on the Grandline with no log pose(all of the ones that had survived the destruction of the island were quickly claimed by villagers) and had been for almost a week.

"Shut up, Amia, this is your fault!" he snapped in return. They were both rather cranky due to a lack of land to exercise on, and being both fruit users they weren't able to move around much in fear of falling in.

"Eh? I think we should blame Greg. He's the one who refused to give us a log pose."

"Because you destroyed his bar!"

"Whatever," Amia grumbled, laying on her back to stare at the sky far above as she thought about who she wanted on her crew. We definitely need to get a few members who can fight. Luce looks pretty weak, and I don't want to protect him all the time. She thought with a sigh. Exhausted, Luce had fallen asleep under one of the benches in their cramped fishing boat. He looked quite vulnerable there, and Amia was disappointed that she didn't have a marker to draw on his face with. One day, she silently vowed. After a few minutes, Amia dozed off as well, dreaming about her dear friend's different reactions to the many pranks she would eventually put him through.

* * *

"Do you think they're dead?" a little girl asked her father.

"Maybe they starved at sea," he replied, awkwardly staring at the two limp bodies in the boat that had washed up on shore half an hour ago.

"You think?!" came her wonder-filled response. "We should bury them, then."

"Yeah...let's go get a shovel, Janie." The father-daughter pair hurried off, presumably to their home to fetch a shovel to bury the two bodies. Ten minutes passed, then twenty, but they never returned.

* * *

"Waah!" came the alarmed yell, followed by a loud thunk and a groan of pain.

"Huh? Luce?" Amia asked sleepily, sitting up and staring at what she saw. The women sat there for a few seconds, not sure by what she was seeing, before bursting out laughing. "There's...dog...face!" was all she could gasp out before snorting into her hand.

Luce was cowering in the bottom of the boat, nursing a large bump on the back of his head. A dog had peed on his face and he had jumped in panic, possibly gaining brain damage in the process. "Oh, God!" Luce yelled, "This is disgusting!" The proud dog sat in front of Luce, wagging his tail and looking for all the world like an innocent passing dog that was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Glaring at the dog, Luce stood and looked around. "Ah, Amia, land," he informed his captain, wiping the horrid yellow substance off his face with a whine.

"Land?" she chirped, straightening up immediately at the mention of solid ground. When she saw the sand of a beach, a happy gasp was released. The captain leapt from the boat and landed on her stomach on the beach. "Thank God," Amia groaned, making sand angels where she lay.

"You're paying for my room," Luce growled as he exited the boat and dragged it further up the beach to tie it to a random post so it wouldn't float off. The dog had followed Luce off the boat and continued to stay next to the Weapons Master as he walked around. "And why the hell are you still here?!" This was directed towards the dog, who just barked contentedly.

"Sure, sure," Amia laughed lightly, waving her hand in front of her face. She stood and grinned at him. "Now let's go find a town!"

"You're freaking lucky for finding an island," Luce muttered under his breath as he jogged beside his captain. From what he could see, the island had a smallish strip of sand acting as a beach around the entirety of the island, and forested mountains sat in a circle, most likely acting as a sort of wall to protect whatever lay inside. "Amia, let's go over the mountains. There's probably something in the middle."

The blonde glanced over at her friend and smiled. "Sure!" Amia replied, eyes twinkling. "They might have a bakery!" At this thought, newfound strength burst forth and she took off at a breakneck speed towards the mountains.

"Ah! Amia!" Luce yelled as he was left behind, but his captain soon disappeared from sight into the forest. "And she's gone," he groaned, rubbing his temples. The large dog barked in agreement. "Might as well follow."

Luce ran towards the forest, the dog trailing behind him. When he broke the treeline, a strange feeling came over him, but he brushed it off as he continued upwards. The forest was silent, which the Weapons Master found strange, but he ignored it as well. "Amia!" he yelled, searching for his friend.

After a couple of hours, his Captain was still nowhere in sight, and he slumped to the ground at the base of a tree, sweating profusely. "She's gone," he groaned. A bark of agreement came from the dog. "Why is she not here while you are?" Luce growled, annoyed now. The dog wagged its tail, blissfully ignorant of the hateful glare aimed its way. Scoffing, the blonde scowled at the huge animal beside him. "You need a name though. I'm calling you...Neko."

Snickering at the name, Luce relaxed. "But whatever," he continued as he stood up. "We're at the top of the mountain, so we'll head down to the other side." With a whine that Luce took as a yes, the pair strolled through the woods, only to halt as a loud roar that shook the ground. A roar that sounded very...very...near.

Stiff as a board, Luce and Neko turned around slowly, sweating bullets. They were met by the sight of a ridiculously oversized lion. "Shit!" Luce yelled. "Run!" Without pausing, Luce spun around and took off down the mountain. With an accusing howl towards the traitor, Neko followed.

He ducked under branched and leapt over boulders, but Luce couldn't get the lion off his tail. Up ahead, he heard movement and voices. _Civilization_? He thought hopefully, a burst of speed accompanying the thought. Neko and him were gasping for breath by the time they reached a huge wall with people standing at intervals along it.

"Please let us in!" Luce wailed, grateful when a small door opened and an older man rushed them in, slamming the entrance shut after them. Luce collapsed onto his hands and knees, panting as he caught his breath. "Thank you, Grandfather," the Weapon's Master breathed, looking up at the elder man with tears streaming from his eyes and sparkles surrounding him.

"Uhm, sure, kid," he replied, dumfounded by the blonde's strange antics. "But you're not the first victim that lion has chased today. Some pretty girl came earlier, but she was laughing her head off. Called herself..Allie? Amy?"

Luce's eye twitchd, the sparkles gone. "That idiot," he growled. "Where is she?" They both ignored the angry roars outside as the old man pointed towards a door down a straight hallway.

"Went off into town. Said something about a sweet's shop and so I pointed her towards Sue's. Best cake in town, I told her, and she practically drowned herself in saliva. The name's Abe, by the way. What about you?" Abe informed the blonde with a friendly smile.

"Luce, and thanks again, Grandpa," he swiftly replied and was gone, leaving Neko to bark at Abe.

Abe paled when he noticed Neko, horror in his eyes. "You're..the demon dog?" he whispered. "No...that monster died months ago, right?"

As the door swung shut, a snarl ripped through the air along with a vicious ripping noise. Neko trotted from the room with slightly stained fur. As the dog ran after Luce, blood trickled out from underneath the crack of the exit. When the door opened once again, only the feet of a bloody corpse could be seen from under the shadows, crimson splattered on the walls.

* * *

Luce stormed through the door of Sue's, the tinkling bell doing much to destroy the dangerous aura he was admitting. At the sight of an overjoyed Amia consuming cake in the corner, a vein twitched on Luce's temple as his eyes shone red. "A-mi-a," he snarled.

The blonde stiffened at the sight of her furious crewmate as possible escape routes flitted through her head. Even the ever-loyal Neko crept away from the man he had been following for the past four hours. "Y-yes, Luce?" Amia stuttered, wiping away the drool that was dripping down her chin.

"What was the big idea, leaving me that that!?" he yelled, looking more like an annoyed ex-girlfriend than a furious crewmate.

"Ah, sorry, sorry, I got fired up for the bakery,"Amia laughed, waving her hand in front of her face. "Would you like some?" the Captain offered, secretly hoping he would refuse. Amia's dream was fulfilled when Luce shook his head.

"No, I want to find items and a forge that I can use to make a suitable weapon," Luce sighed. "You got money?"

"Hm?" Amia asked before grinning. "No, I spent it all on this!"

"Eh?! You really are a dumbass! How are we going to get supplies for sailing?"

Amia stiffened, as if she as been struck by lighting. "I hadn't thought of that!" the young captain gasped, looking like she had found the cure for cancer.

Groaning, Luce slapped his forehead. "Whatever," the Weapon's Master moaned. "Come on, Neko." The blonde turned and exited the shop, the huge dog faithfully following.

"Cat?" Amia asked herself, confused. "Where?"

* * *

**Omake:**

While Luce was strolling around town, searching for a job, he spotted a very familiar title alongside the rest of the shops. "Ehhh?!" he yelled, sprinting into the still-crappy establishment and skidding to a stop. Luce stared at the face of his friend that hadn't changed since he had last seen him on Vita. "Greg?!" Luce shouted at the man in the rather empty Alcohal Empire.

"Hm?" the brown haired man grunted, looking up at Luce. "Who are you?"

"Y-you don't remember me? Luce? Vita?" the blonde stuttered, hurt.

Realization dawned on Greg's face. "Ah, you must be thinking of one of my family members! The Alcohal Empire is a family business," he laughed.

"Then are you Greg's identical twin? Because this is kind of freaky."

Greg laughed the same booming laughter the one on Vita had done and slapped a picture on the counter. When Luce looked at it, his mouth went dry, and he gaped like a fish. An uncountable amount of people stood in a field, grinning the same way, all with the same face. "This is the Greg Clan, males only. For some reason, we all look the same, and as a joke we were all named Greg."

Across town, Amia was experiencing something similar. Actually, the exact same. "So, this is the Sue Clan, huh?" Amia laughed, grinning at the picture of a huge number of identical faces.

"Yes," Sue laughed. "We were all named Sue as a practical joke. Our male family members, the Gregs, own the Alcohal Empire."

"Eh? Really? Is there a Greg on this island?" Amia asked, amazed by the sheer number of relatives Sue had.

"Yes," the pretty woman laughed.

"How strange," Luce murmured, wondering how it would feel to go to their family reunions. How would they speak to each other without talking to fifty others who looked exactly the same. _What a nightmare_, he thought.

**Sorry for the lack of updates! School started again, and I've been very busy(they're already giving us tests). Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review!**


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